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Qatar tops global list for highest density of millionaires

Boston Consulting Group report says 175 out of every 1,000 Qatari households have wealth of at least $1m

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By Beatrice Thomas

Wed 18 Jun 2014 02:02 PM

Qatar has been ranked first in the world with the highest density of millionaires, with 175 households out of every 1,000 boasting private wealth of at least $1m, according to a new report.

Kuwait is fifth with nine percent, or 90 households out of every 1,000 millionaires, Bahrain is sixth with a 5.9 percent millionaire density, while Oman, the UAE and Saudi Arabia rank 10th, 12th and 13th, respectively, according to The Boston Consulting Group’s (BCG) 14th annual global wealth management report.

The report found Qatar ranked sixth globally in ultra-high-net-worth (UHNW) households – those with more than $100m in private wealth.

Kuwait was seventh in this category, while Bahrain was ranked 16th.

On a regional level, the report reveals that private financial wealth grew by 11.6 percent to reach $5.2 trillion in 2013. Key drivers were generally high saving rates and continued strong nominal GDP growth in oil-rich countries, such as Saudi Arabia (13.4 percent), Kuwait (13.6 percent) and the UAE (12.8 percent).

“As in all other regions, equities were the strongest contributor,” said Markus Massi, partner and managing director, The Boston Consulting Group.

“The amount of wealth held in equities rose by 30.5 percent across major MEA markets, compared with 6.4 percent for bonds and 5.7 percent for cash and deposits. With a projected CAGR of 6.5 percent, private wealth in the region will reach an estimated 7.2 trillion by the end of 2018, approximately a 3.6 percent share of total global wealth.”

The study found that MEA, in 2013, had a 32.1 percent offshore share – down from 34.4 percent in 2008. And, with the ongoing attractiveness of regional investment opportunities – compared to global opportunities – this figure is expected to continue to decrease to 31.6 percent in 2018, with Saudi Arabia holding $1.4 trillion of the overall anticipated $7.2 trillion wealth.

Cash and deposits comprised 60 percent of MEA’s wealth in 2008, which dropped to 52 percent in 2013 as equities grew in popularity. This trend is predicted to continue until 2018, with the wealth breakdown anticipated to be 48 percent in cash and deposits, 20 percent in bonds, and 32 percent in equities.

The report said global levels of private financial wealth grew by 14.6 percent from $132.7 trillion in 2012 to $152 trillion in 2013.

The total number of millionaire households reached 16.3 million in 2013, up from 13.7 million in 2012 and representing 1.1 percent of all households globally.

The US had the highest number of millionaire households (7.1 million), as well as the highest number of new millionaires (1.1 million).

Robust wealth creation in China was reflected by its rise in millionaire households from 1.5 million in 2012 to 2.4 million in 2013. The number of millionaire households in Japan fell from 1.5 million to 1.2 million, driven by the 15 per cent fall in the yen against the dollar.

“The growth of private wealth accelerated across most regions in 2013, although it varied widely by market,” said Massi. “As in 2012, the Asia-Pacific region — excluding Japan — represented the fastest-growing region worldwide, continuing the trend of high growth in the ‘new world’. But substantial double-digit growth increases in private wealth were also witnessed in the traditional, mature economies of the ‘old world’, particularly North America.”